Portugal could become the latest European country to ban face veils, primarily worn by Muslim women, in public.
On October 17, the country’s parliament approved a bill that prohibits “the concealment of the face in public spaces”. The ban specifically applies if the veil is worn for “motives of gender or religion”.
Violations of the ban could lead to fines of €200 to €4,000 for the offender. Forcing someone to wear a face veil is punishable with up to three years in prison.
The law will apply to public spaces including public transport, hospitals and schools as well as sporting events and demonstrations. There are exceptions for reasons of health, weather conditions and security reasons.
The bill was proposed by the right-wing Chega party and received the support of Portugal’s centre-right coalition government, composed of the Conservative Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the People’s Party (CSD).
It was expressly aimed at radical Muslims who require women to wear face covers such as the niqab – a garment covering the woman’s entire body and face with a slit for the eyes – and the burka – hat covers the woman completely with a mesh screen in front of the eyes.
In its explanatory statement for the bill, the right-wingers evoked the principles of equality and secularism of the State.
André Ventura, founder of Chega, told reporters: “If they want to wear a burqa I have a great remedy: Ladies and Gentlemen, safe travels! The airport of Portela [the main airport of Lisbon] is nearby. Go there, catch a flight and return to your countries now.
“Frankly, a man who forces a woman to wear a burqa or a woman who thinks that wearing a burqa is her greatest quality are not welcome in this country,” he said.
“Go to the airport, buy a ticket to Saudi Arabia, Morocco, wherever. I’m sorry for saying so but that is how democracy works today.”
The bill will now be sent to the parliament’s constitutional affairs committee for discussion before returning to the plenary for a final vote. It will then have to be approved by Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to become law.
De Sousa could veto the bill. So far, the President has not given an indication of which way he is leaning. His PSD party supported the bill, though.
With the proscription, Portugal would join several other European nations that have already banned certain types of Islamic headgear for women. France first banned face coverings in public spaces in 2010 with Belgium following suit in 2011. The European Court of Human Rights upheld both laws.
Latvia and Bulgaria banned face-covering veils in 2016. Denmark imposed a ban on garments impairing facial recognition in 2018.
In June this year, Danish Prime Minister Mette Fredriksen said her government was also planning to ban the wearing of niqabs in schools and universities.
The Netherlands introduced a partial ban on face coverings in 2019.
In 2021, the Swiss voted in a referendum to ban face coverings in public. A nationwide ban entered into effect on January 1, 2025 this year.
Austria banned all face coverings in public in 2017. That ban, though, is not strictly enforced.
The country’s former Conservative government also tried to ban Muslim headscarves for girls in primary school.
But in 2020, the country’s powerful Constitutional Court struck down the ban as it supposedly violated religious freedom. In recent months, the new coalition government has announced plans for a reintroduction of the ban in a modified format.
